In 2009, UMCP began offering therapeutic hypothermia – a relatively new advancement that improves heart attack survival, reducing the chance of brain damage and giving patients a better chance at full recovery. This technique – which must be administered within six hours of cardiac arrest – lowers the body’s temperature and helps slow the chemical processes that occur when the brain is deprived of oxygen, thereby helping protect fragile brain cells and neurological processes.

Therapeutic hypothermia is used for a very select group of patients; however, for those patients, it can make the difference between life and death.

Additional information about heart attacks is available through our Online Health Encyclopedia or by visiting the American Heart Association’s website.